Competition Bureau's new merger review guidelines are neutral in tone, matter of fact, says Dany Assaf in The Globe and Mail

Watchdog's Requests Seen as Warning Sign for Mergers

If you read between the lines, some of the country's top competition lawyers say, the federal government's anti-monopoly watchdog recently sent Canadian companies a warning: If you are merging with a rival, you could face extra scrutiny. What some see as a salvo from the Competition Bureau, which obtained sweeping new powers in 2009, appears between the lines in the regulator's recently released merger-review guidelines.

Not everyone sees the rewording of the guidelines as a warning sign, however. Most agree that, so far, the Competition Bureau has been fairly cautious about issuing information requests. Dany Assaf said few mergers in Canada require the scrutiny of a supplemental information request. He doesn't anticipate major changes as a result of the new guidelines.

"They are more neutral in tone … they are very matter of fact," Danny said.